Windows 8 - FTDI

1 Future Technology Devices International Limited ( ftdi ) Unit 1, 2 Seaward Place, Centurion Business Park, Glasgow G41 1HH, United Kingdom Tel.: +44 (0) 141 429 2777 Fax: + 44 (0) 141 429 2758 E-Mail (Support): Web: Copyright 2009 Future Technology Devices International Limited Future Technology Devices International Ltd. Application Note AN_234 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Document Reference No.: FT_000798 Version Issue Date: 2013-02-20 The purpose of this application note is to provide users of ftdi chips with a simple procedure for installing ftdi drivers for ftdi devices used under Windows 8. Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 1 Document Reference No.

2 : FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 Table of Contents 1 Introduction .. 2 2 Installing ftdi Device Drivers .. 3 3 Installing CDM Drivers .. 4 Windows Update .. 4 Manual Installation .. 5 Pre-Installation using the ftdi setup executable .. 16 4 Uninstalling ftdi Devices .. 18 5 Troubleshooting .. 19 Windows 8 cannot find drivers for my device .. 19 Devices not shown in Device Manager for uninstalling .. 20 Windows 8 shows a warning that the driver is not certified .. 23 Driver will not install on Windows 8 x64 .. 24 6 Contact Information .. 25 Appendix A Abbreviations .. 26 Appendix B Revision History .. 27 Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 2 Document Reference No.

3 : FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 1 Introduction The purpose of this application note is to provide users of ftdi chips with a simple procedure for installing ftdi drivers for their devices under Windows 8. This installation guide is only intended for installing ftdi devices on the following versions of Windows 8. Windows 8 Windows 8 Pro Windows 8 Enterprise ftdi are not able to support Windows 8 RT as it is effectively a closed system. It will support standard USB device classes, but the option for vendors to add their own drivers and support different device classes is not available. Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 3 Document Reference No.

4 : FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 2 Installing ftdi Device Drivers The Windows combined driver model (CDM) may be installed on XP, VISTA, Windows 7 or Windows 8 allowing applications to access ftdi devices through either the D2XX DLL or a COM port without having to change driver type. However, it should be noted that an application can only communicate through one of these interfaces at a time and cannot send commands to the D2XX DLL and the associated COM port at the same time. The CDM driver comes in two parts as shown in the block diagram below. The first part is the bus layer ( ) that provides D2XX style functionality and is always installed.

5 The second part is the serial COM port layer ( ) and the CDM driver will determine whether a COM port should be exposed by reading the EEPROM of FT232R, FT245R, FT2232D, FT2232H, FT4232H, FT232H and the FT-X series devices. In the case of FT232BM, FT245BM, devices, the CDM driver will default to always installing both the bus and COM port parts. This com port installation can be disabled and EEPROM settings ignored by changing the driver INF files as detailed in ftdi Application Note AN-107, Advanced Driver Options. Please note that modifying the INF files of a Microsoft HCK certified driver will invalidate the Windows certification. The ftdi driver download page is available here Windows CDM Driver Architecture Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 4 Document Reference No.

6 : FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 3 Installing CDM Drivers To install CDM drivers for an ftdi device under Windows 8, follow the instructions below: Connect the device to a spare USB port on your PC. Windows Update If there is an available internet connection, Windows 8 will silently connect to the Windows Update website and install any suitable driver it finds for the device. This screenshot shows the automatic driver installation taking place. Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 5 Document Reference No.: FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 Manual Installation If no suitable driver is automatically found then the following procedure should be followed.

7 Firstly download the latest ftdi Windows drivers from and save them to a known folder on the PC. The desktop can be used so that the driver folder can be easily located. To locate the device manager on Windows 8 - move the mouse to the bottom right hand corner of the screen. When the following window pops up, select the Settings button. Select Control Panel . Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 6 Document Reference No.: FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 From the Control Panel window select Hardware and Sound At the next screen select Device Manager: Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 7 Document Reference No.

8 : FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 In the Device Manager window there will be a device under Other Devices with a yellow warning symbol to indicate a problem no driver installed. The text next to this device will depend on the device attached. In this example the device was a USB <-> Serial Converter device. Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 8 Document Reference No.: FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 Right click on the other device (USB <-> Serial Converter in this example) to bring up a menu as shown below. From the displayed menu select Update Driver This then displays the option for an automatic search or a manual search.

9 Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 9 Document Reference No.: FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 Select the second option to browse manually. In the address box put the exact location where the drivers have been saved to. This may be on a CD or in a folder on the PC. It is not necessarily the exact same location as shown in the screenshot. The drivers could have been saved anywhere of the users choosing. After entering the address select NEXT to start the installation. Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 10 Document Reference No.: FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.

10 : ftdi # 330 When the installation has finished a completion screen is displayed. Press Close to close this window and go back to the Device Manager Window. Copyright 2013 Future Technology Devices International Limited 11 Document Reference No.: FT_000798 ftdi Drivers Installation guide for Windows 8 Version Clearance No.: ftdi # 330 If the Virtual Com Port option has been selected then the Device Manager will show a device under Other Devices but in addition to this there is a new entry under Universal Serial Bus Controllers indicated in the screenshot above as the USB Serial Converter. This indicates the bus layer of the driver is installed. Installing the Virtual Com Port layer of the driver is almost a repeat of the last few steps.